The von Auflauf Infantry and Zeller-Schwarzkatze Battery. . .

As promised, here is a rather bright photograph of the now finished Von Auflauf Infantry (Huzzah figures, mercenaries purchased from nearby Hesse-Seewald during summer 2008), a strange conglomeration of native Stollenians and drafts of SYW veterans from within and around German-speaking Central Europe. As you might expect then, not always the most cohesive or effective fighting force on the battlefield. Certainly not up to par with Stollen's elite Leib (Grand Duchess Sonja's Own) Grenadiers or the Jaeger zu Fuss. Best of all, only one more 60-figure unit of infantry to go, and that portion of my initial Sittangbad-sized project will be all done!

So, here are the promised photographs of what's underway, or just done, here at Stollen Central. The tiny digital camera we have, a Canon, seems to eat batteries as if they are going out of style. Inevitably, it takes days to locate another two NEW ones to replace the old ones, take a few photos, and upload them here. Not like it's a great deal of trouble or anything. Not like it requires a great deal of effort on my part or anything. Sigh. Pretty sad when you think about it.

Keep in mind, we are swimming in old, discharged batteries of all shapes and sizes around Stollen Central because The Grand Duchess, bless her, wants these recycled rather than thrown away into the kitchen garbage can. And it's usually only a few times a year that we make the trip to the far side of town (a staggering 3-4 miles, mind you) to the municipal center that disposes of old appliances, technology, and caustic things like batteries. The upshot of this is that, for all of the #@%&*! batteries in this house, purchasing new ones and putting them where they will be easily found when required later seems to be a MAJOR challenge. Ahem. . . .

But onto better things. It's a crisp, dark November day here in our part of the American Midwest. One of my favorite times of year. The Thanksgiving Holiday is fast approaching, the univeristy semester is winding down in about two weeks, and Frank Hammond over at Minden Miniatures in the U.K. has just released some Prussian hussars in busbies! Click on the link at bottom right to see photos. Look for it under the heading The Miniatures.

These hussar figures and their mounts look spledid, and while I won't order an entire regiment, I will order three or four officers to use as personality figures on the tabletop along with some Prussian artillery crew to round out a few samples Frank included with my order last spring when I purchased 30 of his Prussian hussars in mirlitons. That unit of cavalry will follow the current 13 Garrison figures, 30 Holger Eriksson dragoons, and some more infantry in the painting queue. Realistically, then, it will be some time in the spring or early summer of 2011 before I get to them. Still, the Grand Duchy of Stollen project is nearing completion slowly but surely. Watch for an updated painting progress chart here in the coming days. In the meantime, I'll leave you with the immortal word of Brigadier Peter Young and Colonel James Lawford, "Chaaaaarge!"

And here is a shot of the Garrison artillery crew that's on the painting table at the moment -- the eventual Zeller-Schwarzkatze Artillery, a small unit from one of the several fractious principalities adjacent to the Grand Duchy of Stollen and the Electorate of Zichenau. I'll order some RSM95 heavy cannon for them to man. Still a way to go, but these are fun figures to work with, and, of course, any excuse to paint figures in light blue is always a welcome diversion. Especially after months spent working on their more somberly attired fellows above.